MAKIKI — Kiani Halushka took a chance, and it paid off.

The Kamehameha senior fired a right-footed shot from about 25 yards out to score the only goal in in the closing minutes of a 1-0 win over Punahou in an Interscholastic League of Honolulu game Tuesday.

A crowd of about 100 spectators at the Buffanblu's Alexander Field braved the unrelenting late afternoon sun to witness the Warriors improve to 3-0 in stunning fashion. Punahou, which had outscored its two previous opponents by a combined 14-0, fell to 2-1 with its first loss of the regular season.

"It's always so exciting when it's Punahou and Kamehameha and it was a great finish," Kamehameha coach Missy Moore said. "We were pressing a lot, we had several opportunities that we felt were so close to going in. We were just praying that it would go in at some point and Kiani with that great finish; what a great way to finish the game."

In a frantic finish, Halushka gathered a loose ball a few yards outside of the 18-yard box and blasted a low, driving shot past Buffanblu goalkeeper, Claire "Noe" Kong-Johnson for her third goal of the season.

"I was actually surprised myself," Halushka said "The ball was being banged around in the box and I got it around the top of the 18(-yard box) and I was just thinking to myself that I might as well go for a chance, there's not much time left and I just took it, shot it and I watched it sail over the keeper's hands into the upper right corner V."

Early in the second half, Kamehameha appeared to break a scoreless tie when Sarah Lau put a ball past Kong-Johnson in the 46th minute. However, the center official called the goal off on an apparent foul in the goalie box.

"We're not too sure what the foul was," Moore said. "Usually when the keeper has the ball and there's contact, then they call something, but the keeper didn't have the ball at that point so we were a little confused as to what the call was. We felt it should have been a goal — we'll obviously watch the replay and figure out what happened there and why it wasn't counted, but I'm super happy that it worked out in our advantage and we were able to put it away at the end."

Halushka said the non-goal motivated the Warriors even more.

"We were a little frustrated because we didn't get what we deserved, but that just made us come back even harder and we know that we won it and we deserve it," Halushka said.

Kamehameha had numerous scoring opportunities — including three shots on goal in the game's first 10 minutes — and peppered the Punahou goal through the game. The Warriors also benefitted from the long, accurate throw-ins of Shyann Moriguchi.

"I knew that we'd keep fighting until the end — we're that kind of a team that never gives up," Halushka said. "We have a lot of heart and we have the desire, so it was only a matter of time before it went in."

Both teams continue ILH play Friday with Kamehameha playing Saint Francis, while Punahou takes on rival Iolani in a rematch of last February's Division I state championship final. The Raiders won that game — and their fourth state title in school history — by a score of 3-1.

The Warriors, who won the state crown in 2012, and Buffanblu play again in the ILH second round on Jan. 10 at Kamehameha's Kunuiakea Stadium.